The Obesity Rate in London

The Obesity Rate in London

Like many of the other countries in the world, the United Kingdom is severely affected by obesity. The modern, some say self-induced, illness of the 21st century affects children and adults in equal measure and the medical world points out that there is more danger to obesity than we like to think. More worryingly, the fight against this problem involves many strategies and considerable physical and mental effort. Those who suffer from it have to find gyms, talk to a nutritionist and have regular blood tests to monitor their health. The United Kingdom currently ranks 28th on the list of countries affected by obesity and scientists do not have good news either: in ten years, the rate is expected to grow considerably and a third of the population could be mortally obese. What is worse, children are the most affected by this.

The situation is more serious in London than in the rest of the country and some associate the rise in obesity levels with the huge number of fast food restaurants and the busy, chaotic lifestyle. In London, a fifth of the children are obese and dealing with their health costs the state approximately £7m per year.

It is not surprising that children who are obese at the age of four or five are also obese at eleven and then they grow up to be obese adults. Statistics show that in London the most affected are people living in the suburbs, mainly Westminster, Newham and Southwark. There is no clear evidence to indicate to show that specific ethnic groups are more prone to obesity than others, but a connection has been made between obesity and poverty rates. The most worrying situation is in Hillingdon, where no less than 67% of adults are obese and suffer from adjacent illnesses, such as type II diabetes or heart disease. The figures are worrying, especially considering that 25 years ago they were four times lower.

London can be considered one of Europe’s extremes, with an average obesity rate that is much higher than the EU average. As a results, steps are being made to decrease the rates as much as possible. From awareness campaigns to changes in the local legislation, London residents are being publicly encouraged to switch to a healthier lifestyle. The number of London gyms is increasing and there are frequent membership discounts to attract people.

In addition, famous chefs such as Jamie Oliver and Gordon Ramsey started campaigns in schools to eliminate unhealthy foods. It is still too early to tell whether or not their efforts actually worked, but one thing is for sure: people now know what dangers obesity brings and are not as blind as they were about a decade ago.

London officials have many ideas as to how obesity can be prevented. According to the official chairman of the Health Committee, James Cleverly, there are several future projects aimed at the British capital and most of them focus on children and the education in schools. Whether they will reach their purpose, it cannot be said yet, but one thing is for sure: it is now easier than ever to find gyms in London and get healthy nutritional advice and patients who want to lose weight can find many professionals to help them.

To find gymsg and learn more about London gyms, you can review these links.